The expat adventures of a young married couple

Category: Hungary

There are many cities that I love, but some stay in my heart and permeate my dreams, Paris … Vancouver … New York. The list is a hard one to climb, but, Budapest, in all its beauty, deserves a spot at the top. The marriage of two cities, Buda and Pest, split by the Danube, the city is a study of both imperial classicalism and more modern design. On the left is Buda, crowned by the imperial castle and on the right, a modern city of wide boulevards, restaurants, and nightlife. Linking the old to the new is the grand cast iron, Chain Bridge, which stretches across the Danube.

In Budapest, nightlife never ends, the cakes are aplenty, and the thermal waters warm. With only a few days in the city we made the most of our hours, imbibing on cheap sör in the city’s famous ruin bar Szimpla Kert, completing a walking tour of the city’s sights, devouring cakes and ice cream at the historic Ruszwurm Cukrászda, lounging over a long tapas meal and sangria at Pata Negra and a traditional Hungarian dinner in Lizt Frenec Square, experiencing a “sparty” fueled by an over-the-water DJ at Lukács Baths and recovering the next day with some VIP treatment at Széchenyi Thermal Baths, ending with a final cake at the hidden and beautiful art deco Book Shop Coffee House. All the while, we could not help exclaiming, “When we come back, let’s go here, and here and there!”

The city’s vibrancy and the sweet scent of springtime flowers captivated us, and we are already planning our return.